In the moving equipment rental business, vehicles such as trucks or large vans are often rented to customers who do not have familiarity with the characteristics of these types of vehicles. For example, trucks typically have a height that is much higher than regular passenger vehicles. Thus, trucks have a higher clearance requirement for overpasses, bridges and entrances to enclosed structures. In addition, as trucks are inherently heavier and are mostly driven under load, they respond differently to various maneuvers such as lane changes and turns. Also, due to the unique design of the vehicles, certain features such as rearview mirrors need to be replaced by such items as additional or larger side-view mirrors.
Not only are the physical characteristics of the trucks or vans different, their maintenance and operational requirements are also different. For example, many trucks require a different type of fuel for proper operation—e.g., diesel versus unleaded gasoline. In addition, many trucks have manual transmissions and require the operator to understand the shifting patterns for the vehicle.
The consequences for the renter or operator of the vehicle who is not made aware of the above-mentioned requirements are potentially disastrous. The vehicle may be damaged from the operator trying to pass under a structure that is not high enough for the vehicle, the engine could be damaged or be subject to undue wear and tear due the use of the wrong type of fuel, or the operator or other persons could suffer serious injury where the operator is unaware of the maneuvering characteristics of the vehicle.
In an attempt to provide the renter or operator of the vehicle some warnings or other information important to the operation and maintenance of the vehicle, a brochure or other loose leaf paper is typically handed to the customer or placed in the vehicle at the time of rental. However, due to the amount of paperwork that is handed to the operator at the time of rental—including invoices, receipts, maps and other miscellaneous paperwork, the operator sometimes may not review the provided instructions. In other cases, the operator does not review important information because either the operator misplaces the information; or, where the operator is not the renter, the operator is not provided the information by the renter.
In the alternative, if the information is not given to the renter or operator but, instead, is placed in the vehicle at the time of rental, an additional challenge would be to place the information in a location that is optimal for the operator to notice while preventing clutter in the interior of the vehicle. Space is not usually available on the dashboard as instrumentation and controls are optimally located in front of the driver. But if the information is placed somewhere else, such as on the door, the operator might miss it. Accordingly, there is a need for providing a dedicated information display that will supply important information to the operator. And further, place the information such that notice is more fully assured.